DEA
Administrator Asa Hutchinson
Discusses Prescription Monitoring Programs
with the National Association of Attorneys General

Administrator
Hutchinson

At the spring meeting
of the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), DEA Administrator
Asa Hutchinson asked the country's chief legal officers to consider instituting
prescription monitoring programs in each of their states. NAAG hosted
the Administrator in Washington, DC on Friday, March 22, 2002.

Prescription monitoring
programs require pharmacies to report data to a state agency on all prescriptions
written for either Schedule II drugs (click here for list of Schedule
II drugs: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/pubs/scheduling.html)
or all controlled substances. Pharmacies report this information electronically,
and states could use that data when conducting investigations into illegal
activities.

Currently only 17
states have prescription monitoring programs. Although there is federal
legislation establishing a national prescription monitoring program, the
DEA would like to see more states implement the program themselves. Those
states that have already instituted monitoring programs have the lowest
number of diversion problems. Simply having a monitoring system in place
deters physicians from diverting narcotics into the illegal market.

Oxycontin

Mr. Hutchinson added
that states did not have to set up these programs on their own. The Office
of Justice Programs at the Department of Justice will soon be taking applications
from states that are seeking funds to establish a monitoring system. The
Department of Justice has set aside two million dollars for these grants.

Administrator Hutchinson
promised the support of the DEA in the states' efforts to find a way to
decrease all forms drug abuse. He emphasized the Bush Administration's
strong and clear commitment to achieving even greater success in getting
more and more Americans away from drug abuse through a balanced approach
of education, treatment, and enforcement.